'Very poorly' Cheryl Cole spent two hours in intensive care after being struck down with malaria

Cheryl Cole spent two hours in intensive care after she contracted malaria on holiday in Tanzania.

The singer, who was taken to London's Cromwell Hospital at the weekend, is 'very poorly', according to a report in the Mirror.

She was later transferred
four miles across the capital to the Hospital For Tropical Diseases at
University College London.

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A source close to the star said: 'She really is very poorly indeed and doctors weren’t taking any
chances.

'Intensive care was their best
option when they saw what condition she was in. She is now in the best
place for her with the best experts in the field to look after her.'

The singer collapsed during a photoshoot on Saturday afternoon and was initially diagnosed with exhaustion.

But friends said her health dramatically deteriorated the next
day and she began 'sweating and shaking' at her £6million home in
Hurtmore, Surrey.

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Yesterday, doctors' results confirmed she was suffering from the
infectious disease, and she is now expected to stay in hospital for 'a
number of days' before spending several weeks recovering.

If malaria is
not treated quickly - but fortunately it was in this case - it can have serious side
effects, and is sometimes fatal.

One friend said the star and her doctors believed she had
contracted the illness after being bitten by a mosquito during a brief
holiday to Tanzania last month.

She headed to the African country with American dancer Derek
Hough, 25, who organised the break as a surprise for her. The pair have
been romantically linked.

The friend last night told the Daily Mail: 'Cheryl hadn't been
feeling herself for about a week [after returning on June 22]. She was
feeling tired and listless. In the end, this must have been the
beginnings of the [illness].

'During Sunday afternoon, Cheryl went downhill quickly. She was sweating and shaking and in a bad way.'

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Mrs Cole, 27, had taken a full course of malaria tablets. But certain forms of the virus are resistant to drugs.

Fears for her health were not raised until she fainted during
the North London photoshoot for her forthcoming solo album, the
follow-up to her chart-topper 3 Words.

But sources said she had appeared 'quiet' during the
nationwide auditions for The X Factor last week. She apparently laughed
this off as 'a hangover' at auditions on Friday.

A source said: 'Simon Cowell has told her the absolute priority must be for her to rest. There is no pressure and no rush.'